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names; for the Hebrews overthrew their cities, and their calamities came upon them on the occasion following.

Egyptians Mestrians. Phut also was the founder | reus, we have nothing in the sacred books but their of Libya, and called the inhabitants Phutites, from himself; there is also a river in the country of the Moors which bears that name, whence the greatest part of the Grecian historians mention that river, and the adjoining country, by the appellation of Phut; but the name it has now is derived from one of the sons of Mestraim, who was called Lybyos. We will inform you presently what has been the occasion why it has been called Africa also. Canaan, the fourth son of Ham, inhabited the country now called Judea, and called it from his own name Canaan. The children of these four were, Sabas, who founded the Sabeans: Evilas, who founded the Evileans, now called Getuli; Sabathes, who founded the Sabathens, called by the Greeks Astoborans; Sabactas, who settled the Sabactens; and Ragmus, who founded the Ragmeans. This latter had two sons, one of whom, Judadas, settled the Judadeans, a nation of the western Ethiopians, and left them his name; as did Sabas, to the Sabeans. But Nimrod, the son of Chus, stayed and tyrannized at Babylon, as we have already observed.

When, after the deluge, the earth was re-settled in its former condition, Noah set about its cultivation, and planted it with vines; and when the fruit was ripe, and he had gathered the grapes in their season, and the wine was ready for use, he offered sacrifice, and feasted; and being inebriated, he fell asleep, and lay naked in an unseemly manner.† When his youngest son saw this, he came laughing, and showed him to his brethren, but they covered their father's nakedness; and when Noah was made sensible of what had been done, he prayed for prosperity to his other sons; but for Ham, he did not curse him by reason of his nearness in blood, but cursed his posterity, and when the rest of them escaped that curse, God inflicted it on the children of Canaan. But of these matters we shall speak more hereafter.

Shem, the third son of Noah, had five sons, who inhabited the land that began at Euphrates, and reached to the Indian ocean. For Elam left behind him the Elamites, the ancestors of the Persians. Ashur lived at the city Ninive, and named his sub

Now all the children of Mesraim, being eight in number, possessed the country from Gaza to Egypt, though it retained the name of one only, the Philistim, for the Greeks call part of that country Pales-jects Assyrians, who became the most fortunate tine. As for the rest, Ludieim, Enemim, and Labim, who alone inhabited Libya, and called the country from himself; Nedim and Phethrosim, and Chesloim and Cephthorim, we know nothing of them besides their names for the Ethiopic war, which we shall describe hereafter, was the cause that those cities were overthrown.

The sons of Canaan were these; Sidonius, who built a city of the same name, but called by the Greeks Sidon; Amathus inhabited Amathine, which is even now called Amathe by the inhabitants, although the Macedonians named it Epiphania, from one of his posterity; Arudeus possessed the island Arudeus; Arucus possessed Arce, which is in Libanus. But of the seven others, Chetteus, Jebuceus, Amorreus, Gergesseus, Eudeus, Sineus, and Sama

* One observation ought not here to be neglected, with regard to that Ethiopic war, which Moses, as general of the Egyptians, put an end to, II. 10, and about which modern writers seem very much unconcerned; viz. that it was a war of that consequence, as to occasion the removal or destruction of six or seven nations of the posterity of Mesraim, with their cities, which Josephus would not have said, if he had not had ancient records to justify his assertions, though those records be now lost.

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nation beyond others. Arphaxad named the Arphaxadites, who are now called Chaldeans. Aram had the Aramites, whom the Greeks call Syrians; as Lud founded the Ludites, who are now called Lydians. Of the four sons of Aram, Uz founded Trachonitis and Damascus; this country lies between Palestine and Celesyria. Ul founded Armenia; and Gather the Bactrians; and Mesa the Mesaneans: it is now called Charax Spasina. Sala was the son of Arphaxad: and his son was Heber, from whom they originally called the Jews Hebrews.S Heber begat Joctan and Phaleg. He was called Phaleg because he was born at the dispersion of the nations to their several countries, for Phaleg among the Hebrews signifies division. Now Joctan, one of the sons of Heber, had these sons, Elmodad,

the moderns suppose.
Shem is also called the Father of all
the Children of Heber, or of all the Hebrews, in a history long
before Abram passed over Euphrates. Gen. x. 21.

If Phaleg were so called at his birth, as Josephus here rightly asserts, it is plain the short Hebrew or Masorete chronology was not the chronology of Josephus, by which the confusion of languages and the dispersion of mankind fell no later than the 100th year after the deluge, which is impossible to be supposed, and is a great deal too soon for such confusion of languages and dispersion of mankind, which, by the best chronology, did not happen till 300 years later, or till 400 years after the flood.

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Saleph, Asermoth, Jera, Adoram, Aizel, Decla, Ebal, Abimeal, Sabeus, Ophir, Euilar, and Jobab: these inhabited from Cophen, an Indian river, and in part of Asia adjoining to it; and this may suffice concerning the sons of Shem.

I will now treat of the Hebrews. The son of Phaleg, whose father was Heber, was Ragau, whose son was Serug, to whom was born Nahor; his son was Terah, who was the father of Abraham, who accordingly was the tenth from Noah, who was born in the two hundred and ninety-second year after the deluge: for Terah begat Abram in his seventieth year. Nahor begat Haran when he was one hundred and twenty years old: Nahor was born to Serug at his hundred and thirty-second year; Ragau had Serug at one hundred and thirty; at the same age also Phaleg had Ragau; Heber begat Phaleg in his hundred and thirty-fourth year, he himself being begotten by Sala when he was a hundred and thirty years old: whom Arphaxad had for his son at the hundred and thirty-fifth year of his age. Arphaxad was the son of Shem, and born twelve years after the deluge. Now Abram had two brethren, Nahor and Haran; of these, Haran left a son, Lot: as also Sarai and Milcha, his daughters; and died among the Chaldeans, in a city of the Chaldeans called Ur, and his monument is shown to this day. These married their nieces; Nahor married Milcha, and Abram married Sarai. Now Terah hating Chaldea on account of his mourning for Haran, they all removed to Haran of Mesopotamia, where Teraht died, and was buried, when he had lived to be two hundred and five years old; for the life of man was already, by degrees, diminished, and became shorter than before, till the birth of Moses, after whom the term of human life was one hundred and twenty years, God determining it to the length that Moses happened to live. Now Nahor had eight sons by Milcha; Uz and Buz, Kemuel, Chesed, Azau, Pheldas, Jadelph, and Bethuel. These were all the genuine sons of Nahor; for Teba and Gaam, and Tachas and Maaca, were born of Reuma his concubine; but Bethuel had a daughter Rebecca, and a son Laban.

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he left the land of Chaldea, when he was seventyfive years old; and at the command of Gods went into Canaan, and therein he dwelt himself, and left it to his posterity. He was a person of great sagacity, both for understanding all things, and persuading his hearers; and not mistaken in his opinions, for which reason he began to have higher notions of virtue than others had; and he determined to reform and change the opinion all men happened then to have concerning God; for he was the first who ventured to publish this notion, that there was but one God, the creator of the universe; and that as to other gods, if they contributed to the happiness of men, that each of them afforded it according to his appointment, and not by their own power. This opinion was derived from the irregular phenomena that were visible both at land and sea; as well as those that happen to the sun and moon, and all the heavenly bodies, thus: "If," said he, "these bodies had power of their own, they would certainly take care of their own regular motions; but since they do not preserve such regularity, they make it plain that so far as they operate to our advantage, they do it not of their own power but as they are subservient to him that commands them; to whom alone we ought justly to offer our honour and thanksgiving." For which doctrines, when the Chaldeans and other people of Mesopotamia raised a tumult against him, he thought fit to leave that country; and at the command and by the assistance of God, he came and lived in the land of Canaan. when he was there settled, he built an altar, and performed a sacrifice to God.

And

Berosus mentions our father Abram without naming him, when he says, "In the tenth generation after the flood, there was among the Chaldeans a man, righteous and great, and skilful in the celestial science." But Hecateus does more than barely mention him; for he composed and left behind him a book concerning him. And Nicolaus of Damascus, in the fourth book of his history, says, "Abram reigned at Damascus; being a foreigner, who came with an army out of the land above Babylon, called the land of the Chaldeans. But after a long time he removed from that country also, with his people, and went into the land then called the land of Canaan, but now the land of Judea: and this when his posterity were become a multitude; as to which posterity of his, we relate their history in another work. Now the name of Abram is even still famous in the country of Damascus ; and there is shown a village named from him, the Habitation of Abram." § Gen. xii. 1.

+ An. 1612.

Gen. xii. 5.

CHAP. VIII.

OF ABRAM'S DEPARTURE INTO EGYPT IN CONSEQUENCE OF A FAMINE; AND OF HIS SUBSEQUENT RETURN.

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Now after this, when a famine* had invaded the land of Canaan, and Abram had discovered that the Egyptians were in a flourishing condition, he was disposed to go down to them; both to partake of the plenty they enjoyed, and to learn what their priests asserted concerning the gods: designing either to follow them, if they had better notions than he; or to convert them into a better way, if his own notions proved the truest. Now as he was to take Sarai with him, and was afraid of the madness of the Egyptians with regard to women, lest the king should kill him on occasion of his wife's great beauty, he contrived this device: He pretended to be her brother, and directed her in a dissembling way to pretend the same: for he said, it would be for their benefit. Now as soon as they came into Egypt, it happened to Abram as he supposed. For the fame of his wife's beauty was greatly talked of; for which reason Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, would not be satisfied with what was reported of her, but would needs see her himself. But God put a stop to his unjust inclinations, by sending upon him a distemper, and a sedition against his government. And when he inquired of his priests, how he might be freed from those calamities, they told him, that his miserable condition was derived from the wrath of God, upon account of his inclination to abuse the stranger's wife. He then, out of fear, asked Sarai, who she was, and who it was that she had brought along with her? And when he had discovered the truth, he excused himself to Abram, that supposing the woman to be his sister, and not his wife, he set his affections on her, as desiring an affinity with him by marrying her, but not as incited by lust to abuse her. He also made him a large present in money; and gave him leave to enter into conversation with the most learned among the Egyptians. From which conversation his virtue and reputation became more conspicuous than they had been before. For whereas the Egyptians were formerly addicted to different customs, and despised each other's sacred and accustomed rites, and were angry one with another on that account: Abram conferred with each of them, and confuting the reasonings they made use of for their respective practices, he

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demonstrated that such reasonings were vain, and void of truth. Whereupon he was admired by them in those conferences as a very wise man, and one of great sagacity, when he discoursed on any subject he undertook; and this, not only in understanding it, but in persuading other men also to assent to him. He communicated to them arithmetic, and delivered to them the science of astronomy. For, before Abram came into Egypt, they were unacquainted with some parts of learning; for that science came from the Chaldeans into Egypt, and from thence to the Greeks also.

As soon as Abram returned into Canaan, he parted the land between him and Lot, upon account of the tumultuous behaviour of their shepherds,† concerning the pastures wherein they should feed their flocks. However, he gave Lot his option, or leave to choose which lands he would take; and he took, himself, what the other left; which were the lower grounds at the foot of the mountains: and he himself dwelt in Hebron, which is a city seven years ancienter than Tanis of Egypt. But Lot possessed the land of the plain and the river Jordan, not far from the kingdom of Sodom: which was then a fine city, but is now destroyed, by the will and wrath of God; as will be shown in its proper place hereafter.

CHAP. IX.

OF THE DESTRUCTION OF THE SODOMITES BY THE ASSYRIAN WAR.

Ar this time, when the Assyrians had the dominion over Asia, the people of Sodom were in a flourishing condition; both as to riches and the number of their youth. There were five kings that managed the affairs of this country: Ballas, Barsas, Senabir, and Sumobor, with the king of Bela; and each king led on his own troops. And the Assyrians made war upon them, and dividing their army into four parts, fought against them. Now every part of the army had its own commander, and when the battle was joined, the Assyrians were conquerors, and imposed a tribute upon the kings of the Sodomites, who submitted to this slavery twelve years; and so long they continued to pay their tribute; but on the thirteenth year they rebelled; and then the army of the Assyrians came upon them, under their commanders Amraphel, Arioch, Chedorlaomer,§ and Ti

since the date of this transaction falls four years before the death of Ninyas, there are good grounds to infer, that Ninyas, who then lived in Persia, was the Chedorlaomer of Moses, at that time the head of the Assyrian monarchy: that Amraphel was his deputy at Babylon in Shinar: and Arioch and Tidal his deputies over some other adjacent countries. For it is remarkable, that Ninyas was the first who appointed under him such deputies: nor is there any absurdity in Moses to call them kings,

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